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Delivered SCANDIC TRANS 2020

Rubrik rubrik rubrik Scandic Trans 30 years lĂ¤ngre rubrik passar hĂ¤rcrisis ALite working flow of goods despite the global Up to 90 percents less emissions Kanske en till rubrik hit - without investments in the vehicle fleet

Delivered SCANDIC TRANS 2020

14 7 22

Read about:

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SCANDIC TRANS 30 YEARS Gems from the archive

SCANDIC DAY Everybody together

FAZER Partners for over a decade

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PROFILE Heidi Schauman about the flow of goods durring the coronapandemic

FOSSIL FREE DIESEL Scandic Trans has tried fossil free diesel

INCREASING IN EUROPE An increasing number of addresses around the continent

CLASSICS FOR DINNER Thew Berg family provides the Finnish people with food favourites

20 JOHNNY ON THE ROAD Daily life on the road - pictures en route to..

Balancing

work and leisure Scandic Trans – three decades in the rear-view mirror...................4 A dramatic start to something big.5 Russian traffic – an unforgettable era ..................6 Scandic Day – a concept for kinship..................7 Fazer chooses Scandic Trans........8 The port to Scandinavia ...............10 The profile Heidi Schauman.........12 Fossil free – without investments in the vehicle fleet .........................14 Technology gives a more transparent transport service.......16 The European traffic is growing...17 Food favourites from the country next door are transported with Scandic Trans .........................18 We’re sending Johnny ...................20 Daily express freight between Stockholm and southern Finland...22

Scandic Trans Lagervägen 14 65610 Korsholm Production: bySand and Kustmedia Editorial: Mikael Löfqvist, Anna Sand, Lisbeth Bäck Text & Picture: Anna Sand / bySand Layout: Emilia Häggman / Kustmedia Print: KTMP 2020 Cover: Jani Nieminen / RajuLive

In August 2019 we launched our first house organ, a landmark in the history of Scandic Trans, a publication that’ll be with us forever. Less than a year has passed since the publication date, but the time has been fraught with possibilities, challenges and something we’ll never forget - COVID-19. An important reminder of the fact that we share this planet with others and that we have to take care of the only world we live in. The virus, volatile and hard to stop, has spread like a wildfire. Our daily routines have changed and companies will have to reprioritize and draw up new strategies and visions for the future. The unknown is difficult to handle for us humans, a hardship we must deal with and try to live with. The balance between work, family and leisure is difficult and requires constant prioritizing. My years as a leader have taught me that you have to take care of yourself first, in order to be a good role model and inspirer. Exercise and rest are two crucial components in order to recover and feel energetic. Therefore my everyday life always contains some form of exercise. When I don’t exercise it affects my wellbeing directly, both in my roles at home and in my role as company leader. For me personally exercise and training becomes more interesting when elements of competition are added. I found triathlon - a sport that suits most people and knows no age. We all want to be healthy! There are no shortcuts - no pain no gain. A half hour of pulse raising exercise every day gives more health benefits in daily life that anything else, something all research points to. With age, wellbeing has become more and more important to me. My quality of life has improved considerably thanks to regular exercise and I’m convinced that everyone can find a discipline that does it for them. I wish you happy reading and urge you all to keep moving and make the most of the small things in life. Mikael Löfqvist, CEO Scandic Trans

Scandic Trans

– three decades in the rear-view mirror With three decades in the rearview mirror, Scandic Trans is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Of the five individual hauliers who joined forces and founded the company in 1990 there are two remaining, with some 30 new shareholders who are active hauliers in the company at the same time. The cornerstones of the company’s operation are the same as 30 years ago: to make sure, with the help of a well-oiled vehicle fleet, that the goods reach their destination in the same condition as when loaded up – on time and in full. But society has changed a lot, and this becomes clear when hearing stories about the company’s start-up phase and the subsequent years. Here are some gems from their archive of memories.

I remember when I was coming from Moscow and was to continue on to Flen in Sweden during the Ice Hockey World Championships finals in the spring of 1995. All the cars lined up at the Skatudden Terminal in Helsinki honked their horns in unison every time someone scored a goal, and who could ever forget the final score of 4-1. Jan Gullans

Back when we used NMT there was no way of contacting your loved ones at home when you were in Russia – the phones didn’t work there. That was except for one location on the lay-by outside Novgorod, where we by chance discovered that we could phone home – via Denmark. How it was possible remained a mystery, but everybody knew about it. Johan Rosenqvist I was doing my weekend shopping at Prisma when I happened upon swedish cakes in the freezer for the first time. I of course wondered who had handled the transport. We contacted the Swedish seller and the following Friday it was us who loaded them up for transport to Finland. Göran Sandås

We did a really good thing starting up the terminal in Turku – it was the best thing that ever happened to the company. We got a prime location and everyone knows where it is. We bought the first typewriters for the office in Raisio and I can still remember the time when I had to change flags after the Independence Day celebrations. I managed to hoist the Scandic flag the wrong way so that the eagle was upside down – but it flew, nevertheless. Veijo Kitula

Scandic Trans 30

A dramatic start to something big The year was 1989. The fur business was in crisis and Ostrobotnia Päls had decided to sell its transport company. Some of the hauliers had mutually decided to place an offer. Suddenly all plans were thrown when one of the hauliers bought their mutual workplace on their own. The country faced a slump without precedent, but the determined hauliers didn’t let this fact, nor the failed company acquisition, stand in their way and instead they decided to go into business on their own. “Scandic Trans was founded on the 3rd of August 1990, and when we were shortly thereafter offered the opportunity to buy Sand Trans with its entire vehicle fleet, new possibilities opened up”, Kurt Löfqvist recalls. He became the first CEO of Scandic Trans and his former colleague, Veijo Kitula, who lost his job in Turku at their previous, mutual workplace due to the change of ownership, was appointed office manager. “We also got Kerstin Berg from Ostrobotnia Päls onboard”, Löfqvist continues. Kerstin handled all the finances. Buying Sand Trans became decisive for the start-up period. “The Swedish market opened up thanks to the vehicles we took over from Sand Trans. Later the decision to invest in five vehicles equipped for transporting frozen goods also became very important; today Scandic Trans is specialized in foodstuffs transport”, continues Göran Sandås, one of the original founding members of Scandic Trans. Despite the depression and two devaluations in a row, the mood in the newly founded company was optimistic. The first export of their own went to KWH in Denmark, and thanks to haulage for NTC in Nykarleby

and the advance received from them, they managed to stay afloat. “Quite early on Scandic Trans signed contracts with shipping and fuel companies. This was also an important contributing factor”, Kerstin Berg points out. She remembers the time as both intense and enjoyable. “There were many late nights handling invoices, and more than two weeks vacation in a row was unheard of.” Thanks to the contact with dispatchers in Sweden, new markets opened up with time, and it was also during the depression that the Russian traffic got rolling. “We sat in my office with my ”dispatch bible” making phone calls and jotting down notes on squared paper – we started from scratch”, Sandås remembers. Also Veijo Kitula smiles at the memories of the early years. “When we heard that Gigantti was coming to Finland, I called them and asked if we could make them an offer. They accepted, and later the chain opened more and more stores in the country. Electrolux was also an important and big client of ours.” From a vehicle fleet of ten trucks, the number has grown to nine times that during the last three decades, and more shareholders have joined along the way. Just like in the beginning, the company’s cornerstones are active hauliers with a focus on well-functioning transport and satisfied customers.

A group of Scandic Trans veterans have gathered to discuss mutual memories. From the top left Veijo Kitula, Jan Gullans, Kenneth Sandås, Kurt Löfqvist and Johan Rosenqvist. In the bottom row from the left Göran Sandås and Kerstin Berg.

Scandic Trans 30

Lasse Södergård cherishes many memories from the road, and especially the Norwegian and Russian ones. In the picture you can see one of his vehicles, and although he has reached retirement age Lasse still works part time every fall and spring.

Russian traffic

– an unforgettable era A lot can happen in three decades, and many of the first drivers at Scandic Trans characterise the nineties in a special way. That was when the Russian traffic peaked. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, eastbound exports really started rolling and a seemingly never-ending stream of delicacies were transported every week to Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Sometimes the trips were more exciting than usual; Lasse Södergård, Jan Gullans, Johan Rosenqvist, Göran Sandås and Kurt Löfqvist among others can testify to that. They were there ”from the get-go” and the anecdotes from those times are many.

“Once, a few days before Christmas, one of our hauliers happened upon fake customs officers who demanded that he pay 60 000 Finnish Marks,” begins Kurt Löfqvist, one of the founders of Scandic Trans and also the company’s first CEO. “The whole thing was resolved before I got there with the check, but when we went to pick up the vehicle the goods were gone. The vehicle was seized, and it wasn’t until after long and difficult negotiations that we got it out of Russia the following early spring.”

buying power vanished. Södergård remembers these years as the highlight of his career. “The collapse of the rouble and bigger competition were not the only reasons why the traffic finished,” Kurt Löfqvist continues. “A crucial reason was the threat that a Scandic Trans truck that crossed the Russian border would be seized, since they felt that a vehicle, once seized, would be taken illegally out of the country.

Besides margarine and chocolate, ice cream was also very sought after on the Russian market. Many Russians were newly rich and could afford to spend money. “There was no shortage of work,” Lasse Södergård, nowadays retired after 43 years behind the wheel, recalls. The Russian era lasted from 1991 to 1999 and ended with the collapse of the rouble, when much of the

So sure, there were also disadvantages in this period. “The waiting time at the border was always unknown and the longest we stood lined up was 38 hours. In the worst case the line started directly after Kotka,” Lasse Södergård continues. The waiting time was mainly passed playing cards at the terminal or resting in the cab. “The system worked so that the two kilometre long stretch in no man’s land was filled up once it became

empty, not gradually,” he explains. Many drivers were turned back due to some problem with their documents. “All the documents were scrutinized. The red tape never ended,” he remembers. “The stamps were important. They were supposed to be round, and then there were the watermarks,” Johan Rosenqvist remembers. “The same went for full stops and commas; if one was in the wrong place everything came to a halt. If everything went smoothly the roundtrip Oslo-Moscow-Oslo could be made in seven days, but there was hardly any upper limit. One time Södergård was transporting goods all the way to Samara and Togliatti, approximately 2 200 kilometre east of the border. “I was about to get a military escort, but first I had to wait for a policeman in Saint Petersburg for two days because of a snow blizzard. When he finally arrived, we didn’t understand each other, but the closer we got to the border of Kazakhstan, the more nervous he became,” Lasse Södergård remembers. “But everything went according to plan during the unloading and the return trip, despite the return-cargo I was carrying – Lada spare parts, very sought after in Russia.” The true cargo in the vehicle wasn’t always so clear. Jan Gullans and Göran Sandås remember one example. “One of the company’s drivers was stopped at the border when the border security officer’s dosimeter went off ten meters from the car. In the cargo hold, containing airfreight loaded in Malmö, there was a radioactive box, which turned out to be empty.” They never found out what it had contained, and the story ends there. Only one thing is for sure. the memories are many, and entertaining.

Scandic Day – a concept for kinship

Two years ago, the concept of Scandic Day was established - an event for all the company’s employees, drivers and hauliers as well as different collaboration partners. Scandic Day 2019 was held in Turku during a sunny weekend in August and was a successful get-together, in every possible way. Text: Anna Sand • Pictures: Johan Ekman / RajuLive “The purpose of the event, which has taken place twice, is that everyone within the organization, from all places of business, gets the opportunity to meet and spend time together in a relaxing setting. Many of us stay in touch daily, but only via e-mail or phone, which isn’t as personal”, notes Marjo Lehto, office manager at the Scandic Trans terminal in Turku and the woman behind last year’s arrangements. Last year the Scandic Day kicked off on Friday afternoon with a series of lectures and continued the following day with socializing and other events such as test drives and competitions in the form of different strength challenges as well as demonstrations by suppliers and collaboration partners. “And of course, food, coffee and cake”, Marjo adds with a smile. Children and other family members were also welcome along to the event, where the main purpose is to create a sense of kinship and belonging. With us were representatives from manufacturers and associates as well as the athlete Jennifer Antell, who organized the competitions. Due to the company’s 30th anniversary celebrations, Scandic Day will be on hold in 2020. “Instead we’ll be celebrating with another type of event this fall, if circumstances allow”, Marjo Lehto concludes.

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Fazer and Scandic Trans

– partners

for over a decade It’s been 129 years since the young Karl Fazer opened his first bakery in Helsinki, with the purpose of creating moments of joy through meaningful food. Today Fazer makes up an impressive corporate group with operations in nine countries and exports to over 40. For over a decade Scandic Trans has been one of the group’s partners when it comes to food transport.

Text: Anna Sand • Pictures: Fazer

azer´s operation is vast within the food industry, both geographically and when it comes to the form of business. “When we talk about Fazer, the first thing which comes to mind is confectionary, but our baked goods also mean big business, not forgetting our classy and iconic Fazer cafés.” Fazer’s purchasing manager within logistics, Marie-Christine Frantz, begins. The corporate group employs almost 9 000 people spread over nine operative countries and last year’s turnover hit 1,1 billion euro. The group includes three parts: Fazer Bakery, Fazer Confectionery and Fazer Lifestyle Foods. “In the newest part, Fazer Lifestyle Foods, which was founded in 2017, the focus is on plant-based, dairyfree food, on-the-go-snacks and smoothies as well as breakfast products”, Frantz explains. Development has been rapid in the last couple of years in this sector. New interesting products are launched continuously. The Fazer Experience visitor centre was opened in 2016 when Fazer celebrated its 125th anniversary. In the visitor centre people can experience Fazer in their own way, familiarizing themselves with Fazer’s history, explore a raw materials garden and see how chocolate or sourdough bread is made, among other

activities. In 2019 the Fazer Experience had over 230 000 visitors. “Fazer has deliberately been focusing on innovations in order to create more sustainable solutions for the food products of the future”, Frantz continues. In Lahti the company is currently building a xylitol factory, which is expected to be finished this fall. With the help of state-of-the-art technology, the factory will produce xylitol from oat hulls, a by-product of the oat-milling process. “The process is the first of its kind and represents an innovative circular economic solution which Fazer is now patenting”, Frantz tells us. Sustainability is highlighted within all of the corporate group’s operations – they have committed themselves to lowering emissions by 50 percent within the whole value chain by 2030. Some of the emissions are made up of CO2-emissions within the logistics sector, where Scandic Trans is a collaboration partner, and has been for quite some time. “When choosing a logistics partners, we look at the big picture. Needless to say, it’s important that the vehicle fleet is in good condition, that they fulfil all the requirements

Fazer, turning 130 next year, congratulates its partner Scandic Trans on their first 30 years of business.

and regulations when it comes to transporting food and that the personnel knows the industry standards. But there are other factors that also play a crucial part. Timetables must be kept and communication between us has to run smoothly”. At the same time, it’s a question of promoting long-term, sustainable development, for example by creating smart solutions in order to minimize the strain on the environment. “Cost-effective transport is also an important factor”, Frantz adds. Joakim Lerbacka, transport manager at Scandic Trans, states that both parties share the same values when it comes to the environment and quality. “Fazer has been a longstanding client of ours, and we look forward to continued, stable and long-term collaboration. We at Scandic Trans value a close relationship with our customers and being flexible throughout the whole transport chain. We also continuously strive towards being able to meet the client’s needs in all situations and therefore there is always someone there providing a personal service – we call him Johnny”, Joakim adds with a smile.

Fazer has operations in nine countries and exports to around 40. Logistics is an important part of a well-functioning entity and since 2009 Fazer has collaborated with Scandic Trans. “We expect much from our hauliers when it comes to quality, schedules and communication.”

The big picture has been decisive for Fazer, and with Scandic Trans as a partner there is also big flexibility when it comes to transport. “We transport a great deal between our own units. With Scandic Trans we transport both big and small, all according to the quality demands in place for foodstuffs transport. It has been very easy to work with them and everything has run smoothly, just like it should”, Frantz concludes.

Serving Scandinavian customers

out of southern Sweden

Last year was the subsidiary Scandic Logistics’ first real business year, and result for the start-up have been above and beyond all expectations. The sales and dispatch company, located in Helsingborg on the Swedish west coast, focuses exclusively on transport between Scandinavia and Europe, and after a favourable 2019 an ambitious business plan has now been prepared for the next five years.

Text: Anna Sand/bySand • Foto: Scandic Logistics/ Saint-Gobain Ecophon & iStock he start-up of the subsidiary means that Scandic Trans can offer a considerably broader portfolio of transport services in Europe for its Scandinavian countries – Sweden, Norway and Denmark. “We also have excellent collaboration with our Finnish colleagues and we help each other regularly with transport solutions,” Joakim Lassen, Sales Manager at the Helsingborg office, explains. “Today we have steady flows from Poland to Scandinavia and vice versa as well as from Sweden to the Baltic states and Italy, both when it comes to temperature-regulated and hazardous goods, as well as great solutions for domestic transport. This includes mixed cargo groupage, partial loads and FTL,” Joakim continues.

Scandic Logistics works with some ten haulage contractors on the continent and quality standards are high. “We sign contracts with haulage contractors and choose co-workers on the basis of their own areas of expertise. They should have the same quality and environmental certification as Scandic Trans’s own hauliers, and we always pay them personal visits before making our choice. High quality and an equally high level of service are keywords,” Joakim Lassen points out. The goal, as often requested by the customers, is to minimize the number of hauliers in the chain. “The customer should feel that the whole transport is handled by Scandic Trans, all the way from the continent to unloading or vice versa,” he continues. Today’s customers have strict demands, especially when it comes to delivery times and follow-up op-

Joakim Lassen, Sales Manager at Scandic Logistics, together with Måns Böös at Saint-Gobain Ecophon.

portunities. They often expect express deliveries and regular, real-time notifications. “This is also one of our strengths. We have chosen not to compete with low prices. Instead, through our tight controls, we want to make our customers feel that they can relax and leave the delivery in our

We also have excellent collaboration with our Finnish colleagues and we help each other regularly with transport solutions,

hands. They appreciate receiving notifications about arrivals, unloading times and these sorts of things, often almost exactly to the minute.

“But now the honeymoon is over, and we have established a rather aggressive five-year plan,” Joakim says with a smile. The goal is to recruit a third person for the office towards the end of the year, and that within five years we will have our own terminal business somewhere in the southern part of Sweden,” he continues. The big challenge in his work together with traffic planner Alex Proca, involves creating and building new customer relations. “There are seldom people to contact on a local level when it comes to global corporate groups. At the same time, it’s just that - being out amongst customers and building relationships - that is so crucial in this business. And keeping your promise is of course a given,” Joakim concludes.

Just like in Finland, they have specialized in temperature regulated, cooled and frozen foodstuff transport, and also to a degree in hazardous goods, in the rest of the Nordic countries and Europe as well. “But we exclude no one,” Joakim stresses. There have been many inquiries to the Helsingborg office, and once the traffic really started rolling during the spring of 2019, the final accounts for last year were well beyond expectations.

An impressive flow of goods

– despite the crisis As Swedbank Finland’s chief economist for almost a year now, and before that in the same role at Aktia, Heidi Schauman has a deep insight into the Finnish economy, trade and the challenges ahead after this exceptional spring.

chauman, born in Tammisaari but nowadays residing in Helsinki, has a doctorate in economics and vast experience of the banking world. She sums up her current work duties in the following way:

“I follow developments from an economic perspective, partially domestic, partially global, and what this may mean for society at large and for our individual customers. My job is to communicate the message to them in different ways.” Right now nobody knows how much Finland’s GDP will drop this year due to the current circumstances, but Heidi believes that anything between minus five and minus twenty percent is possible. “It all depends on how long the crisis lasts but landing at minus 12 percent isn’t that far-fetched.”

It’s hard to find two countries so much alike as Finland and Sweden anywhere else in the world.

Nor have we yet seen all the effects of Brexit. “We know that it has happened, but not much more, and today nobody yet knows how much harder it will become. But the timing was undoubtedly quite bad,” Heidi notes. Seen from a global perspective the spring’s events make a scenario with a weakened China in relation to USA and Europe likely, which according to Heidi may lead to the USA and EU getting closer. “When it comes to the Nordic countries it’s important that we maintain our high competence level and the knowledge that exists here, and only here. The Nordic economies are in good shape overall, and even though there are structural differences between the countries, it’s hard to find two countries so much alike as Finland and Sweden anywhere else in the world.

The transport business is the centre of everything and crises like the one we’re experiencing right now present a huge logistical challenge with completely new flows of goods.

“We still have that solid, industrial nucleus in our production on the home front, and even though Germany nowadays is our most important export country, Sweden is running a close second,” Heidi continues. We export completely different goods to Sweden than to Germany, and the trade between the countries is very broad. “It’s noticeable how little we export to Norway compared to Sweden, but contacts and relations between the countries are also on a completely different level. Then of course the Nordics make up a very

special area, where each country has its own regime. Finland uses the European currency, while the other countries have their own, free-floating krona, except for Denmark with its currency tied to the euro. Norway in turn isn’t a member of the EU,” Heidi adds. Exports and their yearly changes greatly depend price of oil, which of course has sunk considerably this spring. “We have to remember that even if the value of our exports has decreased a lot due to this, the export in itself hasn’t declined on a corresponding scale. But the unstable krona presents challenges for companies in both countries and for those doing business with them.” The transport business is, according to Heidi, a good indicator of how the economy in the country is doing. “It’s sensitive to the state of the market and has to be flexible. It’s the centre of everything and crises like the one we’re experiencing right now present a huge logistical challenge with completely new flows of goods. In Finland this has worked wonderfully well and we haven’t experienced any shortages of necessities. I’m impressed by how smooth the flow of goods has been.” Threats to the transport business depend greatly on whether changes in the flow of goods become permanent as a result of the pandemic, the trade war and Brexit. “It might change the logistics business a great deal, especially if big changes take place within long production chains.” If the crisis drags on or if a new wave hits us in the fall, she fears many bankruptcies and a massive wave of unemployment in the country, which will also inevitably affect our flow of goods. “Then it will be interesting to compare the countries, and I am of course talking about Finland and Sweden, since we have chosen very different paths. Already now we can see smaller affects on the Swedish economy than on the Finnish one, but in the end it’s always global demand that’s decisive.”

Fossil free

– without investments in the vehicle fleet The use of renewable fuels is a decisive factor for a sustainable logistics sector. Higher and higher demands are put on both individuals and companies to decrease their emissions, and at Scandic Trans they strive be a pioneer in decreasing the climate footprint of their traffic.

ome measures in this line of work can demand big investments, which are heavy to bear. But there are also considerably easier ones, that don’t require any investments whatsoever in the existing vehicle fleet. The choice is made when standing at the fuel pump, since it doesn’t concern the motor itself, but the fuel used in it.

This is something Scandic Trans has focused on, and during the winter months of 2020 they tested Neste’s MY Renewable Diesel in several of their vehicles. “For a long time now we’ve been searching for alternatives that create a measurable environmental impact. Our customers have also actively done so. Right now the use of fossil free fuels is the only sustainable and possible way for us and our customers to noticeably lower emissions,” explains Mikael Löfqvist, CEO at Scandic Trans.

“The cost increase for using fossil free fuel is 2,2 - 3 percent of the total haulage and during the second half of 2020 we will introduce environmental measures as an alternative to all Scandic Trans customers interested in renegotiating,” Löfqvist continues. Neste MY Renewable Diesel, also called HVO, gives both companies and individuals the chance to reduce their environmental footprint, without costly investments. “It’s a totally renewable and sustainable fuel, which leads to up to 90 percent less greenhouse gas emissions (CO2). It can be mixed with regular diesel; no modification of the engine is needed. Just fill up and drive,” explains Heidi Peltonen, manager of sustainable partnerships at Neste, the world’s leading producer of renewable diesel. When it comes to capacity and function, Neste MY Renewable Diesel works just like fossil diesel, because it has the same chemical composition.

“The differences lie in the production. Renewable diesel is part of a circular production chain,” Peltonen explains. While ordinary diesel is produced from crude oil, HVO is made out of bio-waste and decomposed products, like animal and fish fat, cooking oil and grease from the food industry and restaurants, as well as from decomposed products from the production of cooking oil – components that contain a great deal of energy. “The result is a product much better for the environment than fossil diesel, which delivers the same performance thanks to its chemical composition and can be used straight away without making changes to the vehicle fleet or infrastructure.” Neste’s MY Renewable Diesel has been available since 2017 and most manufacturers of heavy-duty vehicles, among others Volvo, Scania and Mercedes, have approved the use of clean HVO in their engines. “The challenge for us is to reach out to the users with the message that each and every one of us has to realize and take responsibility for climate issues,” Peltonen states. But already now more and more companies are starting to realize that, by taking environmental responsibility, they can also gain a competitive advantage. “More and more customers demand fossil-free solutions. This is something logistics companies can take advantage of by quickly changing to fossil-free fuels. That way they become a natural partner for

responsible clients, contracting companies and businesses,” Peltonen says. Kenneth Sandås at Trans Sandås Ab, one of the joint owners of Scandic Trans, has noticed the same phenomena. “The demand for eco-friendly transports is constantly growing, and during the spring we tested Neste’s MY Renewable Diesel in one of our vehicles. It worked really well and we haven’t noticed any differences in performance or consumption,” Sandås notes. “According to the data, renewable diesel should also have a positive effect on the length of time between servicing the vehicles, which sounds very plausible,” he adds. The availability of Neste’s HVO has improved continuously. “The distribution network is expanding all the time and the goal is that we will have over 100 stations all around Finland in the fall of 2020. MY Diesel is also available in Sweden,” Peltonen concludes.

Technology gives

a more transparent transport service A new IT department, consisting of a team of three people, was founded at Scandic Trans this spring. The change will create larger IT resources and utilize the possibilities today’s technology has to offer.

Reko Märsylä and Linda Bengs are two of the members of the IT team. They work on a broad scale when it comes to developing the systems within the company. “One thing is monitoring development; we must constantly evaluate what measures are needed. We also develop our own programs and measuring and reporting systems in order to simplify work routines within the company, and we also work on integrating our own and our customers’ systems wherever possible,” Reko explains. The company’s customers benefit from the work carried out in all these areas. “Our own pricing system enables us to give the client a fixed rate instead of waiting for a quotation. Scanning of the waybills directly using the drivers’ cell phones has shortened invoicing times, and in the very near future the customer will also be able to access scanned waybills automatically. “Furthermore, our follow-up programs make it possible for us to constantly adapt our operations so that our customers get the best possible service, and when our systems are integrated with the customers’, they get much more insight into the transport we provide to them,” Reko continues.

Thanks to these measuring and reporting systems they will also soon be able to offer companies emissions reports and other information. Bookings have to some degree been automated so that the customers themselves can feed them into the Scandic Trans system, and where that is not yet technically possible, the problem can be solved through a portal. “But bookings are still also fed manually, when they are placed via telephone or e-mail,” Linda adds. The goal is also to be able to book a ferry ticket through their own system. Today this also happens via a portal, and this works as a kind of temporary stage. The technology that makes it possible for customers to follow their transport via a GPS signal is already in place, and can be used by those who wish to do so. In a corresponding way the same information can be communicated to all the shipping companies in case of delays. ”Requests are often very customer-specific and depend on the client’s size and operation, but the trend is that more and more of them wish for a better insight into their transport,” Linda and Reko conclude

Reko Märsylä and Linda Bengs, furthest to the right, are part of the IT team at Scandic Trans. Here they are discussing with Marko Äbb, who works with transport planning at the office in Mustasaari. Their systems have been put to the test due to this spring’s telework, and since the transport system works in the cloud, the personnel can work basically anywhere without it affecting the client.

An increasing number of addresses around Europe Earlier Scandic Trans transported imported commodities from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy, but now also Luxemburg, Austria and Hungary are included on this list. This mainly concerns the transport of temperature-regulated foodstuffs, and the main man behind the work with this new start-up is Richard Romar, project manager within market development. Targeted sales work started about two years ago, and since then they have gone from zero to quite considerable and regular volumes when it comes to both import and export. “During the fall of 2019 we clearly focused on new procurements and quotations, to great success. Existing, satisfied customers have chosen to continue using Scandic Trans, and new ones have been added. Many of them have never before experienced the kind of reliability and punctuality that we have been able to offer. This is something they have valued, especially after the strikes within the trade last year,” Romar explains. The work isn’t just about building new networks; it also means developing our service for existing customers. More and more customers are looking for a more comprehensive service from one company, instead of involving several different companies from different markets in their transports, something that Scandic Trans has been eager to cater to. Flexibility, storage capacity and finding solutions at very short notice are key to success in this line of work. This is corroborated by Mikael Kock, the man in charge of the operational work of coordinating the transports since the fall of 2019. “It can happen that the customer will contact us with one day’s notice, and even then we do all we can to find a solution. Most often we succeed, and even though the volumes and also the selection have grown dramatically during the last six months, we’ve managed to develop a well-functioning and effective system,” Kock notes. Scandic Trans uses their own subcontractors, haulage contractors with whom they build long-lasting relations and who perform on the level that both Scandic Trans and the company’s customers demand. “The goal is to continue to grow year by year. There is potential for development in several countries: in Poland, The Czech Republic, Hungary and partly also in Great Britain, just to mention a few. From our own terminal in Turku we also have the capacity to load containers for further sea transport to Asia. Scandic Trans’s big warehouse capacity at our own terminals can often be crucial, just like the price of course, but reliability and quality in both transport and service are often the decisive factors when it comes to the customers’ choice of haulier,” Romar concludes.

The Berg family provides

the Finnish people with food favourites from the country next door Berg Trading is a private sales company and agent that imports high quality foodstuffs mainly from Sweden, but also from Germany and Italy. From earlier experience they know that quality and reliability are the most important criteria when choosing a logistics partner, and for a few years now all of their transport has been handled by Scandic Trans vehicles. The company’s history dates back around 20 years. Haulier Sven Berg transported pastry and meat products all around Ostrobothnia, and when Dan Cake shut down their business in the area, the idea of importing products of their own started to grow. “My father was familiar with the majority of the retailers in the area through his work, and that’s how it all started,” says Magnus Berg, one of the sons involved in the company since 2004. Berg Trading in its current form was founded in 2007 and over the years the range has varied with different products and brands. “We started collaboration with Leksands Knäckebröd Ab, Sweden’s second biggest manufacturer of crisp bread, already in 1999. Nyåkers Pepparkakor, which is one of the oldest ginger bread bakeries in Sweden, with a very long history, has for many years been a part of our selection and since 2015 we have imported different beverages from Herrljunga Cider, mainly cider, but also mulled wine and Christmas root beer,” Magnus tells us. A few other brands are included in the product range, and when choosing them, the first thing to do is to look at the Finnish market and what sells here.

For Berg Trading, the exceptional spring has had a positive effect on their numbers. “Sales of dry goods increased noticeably,” Toni Lieskoski and Magnus Berg note. “We know the market and what is consumed in Swedish Ostrobothnia. We choose neutral products that are popular all over the country, but the challenge is to also find a viable selection for the northern and eastern parts of Finland,” Magnus further explains. New collaboration comes through their own and the producers’ initiative, but having ”the world’s greatest product” doesn’t automatically mean that the stores want to include it in their selection. “It was considerably easier 10-20 years ago; today the stores’ assortments are very centrally managed,” says Magnus. Quality is also one of the priorities, when it comes to both the products and the state they are delivered in. The orders and transports are carried out according to storage needs. “Normally it’s one full trailer a month from Sweden, but before the high season, Christmas that is, that amount is ten times as big. The goal is, for profitability reasons, to always fill whole trailers, because logistics makes up a big part of our yearly costs. But when it comes to foodstuffs the crucial criteria isn’t the price,” Magnus continues.

Nobody benefits from goods damaged by damp during transport, and if that happens it’s almost always the importer’s responsibility. “We coordinate all the transport ourselves, both coming into the country and continuing on to the retailers,” Magnus explains. For a few years now all imports have been carried out with the help of Scandic Trans. “They only have well-functioning vehicles and are very flexible. They have a big fleet, and thanks to that they can take on jobs at short notice. They are also very flexible when it comes to volumes.” All products are transported in so called cage cars as many of the producers don’t approve transports covered only in tarp, and even if the goods aren’t chilled, some producers demand temperature-regulated conditions even before loading them. “When it comes to the transport of foodstuffs and cold chains, Scandic Trans know what they are doing,” Magnus states. “A sign that everything has gone smoothly is that there is no need for follow-up communication after a delivery. The company also seems to have a genuine interest in development,” he concludes.

Tobias Björndahl loading frozen goods in Sweden. Picture: Tobias Björndahl

Norway. Picture: Robert Krooks

We’re sending Johnny

En route to Stranda, Norway and loading pizza. In the car ahead Kjell-Boris Näsman. Picture: Christian Silander

No matter how your goods are to be transported, in warm or cold conditions, as express or hazardous cargo, you can expect the industry’s best overall experience when you choose Scandic Trans as your logistics partner. We’re there for you around the clock, and with us you get your very own contact person. We call him Johnny; all of us at Scandic Trans are Johnny to you. Whatever you need, no problem! We’re sending Johnny. Here are some glimpses of daily life on the road with Johnny.

Unloading frozen goods from Norway. Picture: Anton Broo The border between Sweden and Norway in Storlien. Picture: Tomas Bengs

Coffee break at Teboil in Viluksela. Picture: Matti Laine

On the ferry again Picture: Janne Laine

En route to Norrköping. Picture: Jens Söderblom

On a business trip to Norway. Picture: Jesse Vähärautio

Unloading in Sweden. Picture: Petri Kaura

Loading fish in Norway. Picture: Janne Nousiainen

En route with Viking Grace. Picture: Benjamin Launokorpi

Waiting for a run in Kungsbacka, Sweden. Picture: Kari Oikarinen

Siipola’s car all clean after going through a truck car wash in Naantali, ready for its trip to Sweden. Picture: Mikko Laine

Into the sunset. Picture: Reijo Tikkala

Alone on Finnlink’s sun deck during corona times. Picture: Reijo Tikkala Next to a newly washed rig at the terminal in Turku, waiting for the evening departure with Viking Grace. Picture: Marcus Lassfolk

A new vehicle after a week off. Picture: Ilkka Kosonen

En route with Silja Symphony from Helsinki to Stockholm. Picture: Benjamin Launokorpi

Meelis Kütt and a newly washed car in the sun in Örebro, Sweden, awaiting loading. Picture: Meelis Kütt

Daily express freight

between Stockholm and southern Finland

Quick deliveries are becoming increasingly important to many companies and producers. Scandic Trans has been able to provide express freight deliveries between Finland and Sweden since 2003, thanks to their terminal in Turku harbour. Departures in both directions take place every weekday and four vehicles, specially developed for this purpose, run between Stockholm, Turku, Helsinki and Tampere every weekday. The terminal, including its warehouse facility, has the best possible location in Turku harbour, and today employs three people. Another two people also manage the express traffic from here. Office manager Marjo Lehto clarifies: “At the same address we have our sales office and storage operation. We have facilities for storing cold, frozen and warm goods. Here we handle all kinds of goods; foodstuffs, general cargo and hazardous goods. The volumes have increased constantly over the years, both when it comes to stored and transit goods. “But at the moment we are seeing a slowdown in the export boom,” Marjo Lehto notes. “Our express freight to Stockholm is carried out with smaller vehicles without trailers, approved for foodstuff transport. They are versatile in the sense that they have different temperature zones and can carry both frozen and temperature-controlled goods, but also regular goods, all according to the customers’ wishes. “Our drivers are very familiar with all the loading and unloading spots, and thanks to the vehicles’ size

we can deliver directly to the customer. We focus on customer-oriented solutions that we tailor as we go and the owner-based traffic, which is the cornerstone of Scandic Trans, includes strong know-how,” Marjo Lehto continues. “They have really invested in keeping their vehicle fleet in good condition and all the drivers are educated and competent. They make up the core of the operation and have a strong and important role, especially when it comes to loading and unloading,” she adds. Besides the express traffic, the terminal in Turku also has another role. When needed, their own freight can be reloaded here, depending on the final destination, and the warehouse is used for both short and longterm storage, which often includes seasonal products. Marjo Lehto herself works mainly with sales and customer relations. “To us it’s important not only to find new customer relationships, but also to maintain our existing ones. The level of service has to be high and the customer always has to be satisfied. We also want to be able to react quickly to changes in the flow of goods. Thanks to the company’s size it’s easy for us to see to the big picture,” Marjo Lehto concludes.

TAMPERE

TURKU

HELSINKI-AREA

STOCKHOLM-AREA

TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED GOODS FROM DOOR TO DOOR ON THE NEXT WEEKDAY

“Our customer-oriented solutions and reliable drivers are the core of the operation,” says Marjo Lehto, office manager at Scandic Express in Turku. In Turku Scandic Trans has 2300 m2 of terminal and warehouse space with cold, frozen and warm storage. In addition, we have access to different collaboration partners’ terminals and storage facilities in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. At the terminal in Turku the following services are provided: • • • • • • • • • • •

terminal and warehousing services temporary storage short and long-term storage packaging, labelling and distributing services statistics and reporting logistics services dispatch cold storage +2 … +4 frozen storage -25 … -18 dry storage a pick-up service

We’re sending Johnny. Our goal is that you as our customer experience the transport of your goods as simply as possible. That’s why we include so much more than just the transport, and you can reach us whenever you need. We are always at hand, around the clock, and with us you get your very own contact person - Someone who makes your dealings with us smooth, personal and safe. We have decided to call him Johnny. But it might just as well be Carina at the front office or Magnus who is our transport manager. Their main focus is your unique transport. All of us at Scandic Trans are your Johnnys - every day of the week. No problem, we’re sending Johnny.

North European carrier with strong specialist areas www.scandictrans.fi +358 20 120 2500